


Life in Radiator Springs

by KovuTheGirl



Category: Cars (Movies)
Genre: F/M, Humanized, Original Character(s), Romance, Salqueen, post-Cars 3, series of One-shots
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-26
Updated: 2017-09-03
Packaged: 2018-12-06 03:08:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 5,403
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11591664
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KovuTheGirl/pseuds/KovuTheGirl
Summary: Mostly just a bunch of SalQueen one-shots, but there will be some that focus on other characters as well. Most of them were taken from different 'OTP Writing prompt' lists. Humanized.





	1. Holding Hands

**Author's Note:**

> So this is literally just a series of one-shots about my favorite animated car couple; Lightning and Sally! The one-shots do sort of follow each other (or at least all follow the same established AU) and will be posted in chronological order. (There will be time jumps though).

The whole track seemed to have gone crazy. The press began to swarm around famous racer Lightning McQueen and his girlfriend Sally Carrera. The two had been dating for months now, but only their ‘family’ in Radiator Springs knew about it until now…

Lightning hadn’t thought much of it, he seriously didn’t think them holding hands would get this much attention. The young red-haired racer seemed more annoyed than uncomfortable in this situation. 

Sally wasn’t very accustomed to the attention and the paparazzi, or being in the spotlight as she was now. The petite blonde woman was uncomfortable to say the least, and did her best to just ignore them. 

“Now I remember why we don’t do any public displays of affection,” Lightning groaned in annoyance. Sally giggled.  
“Oh, Stickers, it’s no big deal. Thought you were used to the media prying into your private life?” she remarked.  
“I am, but it’s still annoying, Sal.” he replied.  
“Perhaps, but it’s still not that bad.” she reasoned.  
Trying to get to the pits, the young couple were bombarded with questions.  
“McQueen, is she your girlfriend?”  
“How long have you two been together?”  
“Are you two planning on getting married?”  
“How did you meet?” 

Figuring they had a few minutes to spare, Lightning and Sally humored the reporters. 

“Yes, she is my girlfriend. We’ve been together for…what, five months now?” Lightning answered.  
“And as far as marriage goes, we have yet to discuss that. We met when he teared up our road in Radiator Springs; I’m the one who wanted him to fix it.” she smirked. 

Once they were satisfied with the answers they were given, they allowed the couple to head to the pits. Arriving at the designated pit area for #95, the two were greeted by Doc Hudson; Lightning’s crew chief. 

Doc was a famous racer for the piston cup back in the 1950’s. After an awful wreck in ’54, The Fabulous Hudson Hornet seemed to have disappeared. Many thought he had died from the crash, but they were in for a surprise when he reappeared in the racing world as Lightning’s crew chief at the end of his rookie year back in 2006. Noticing that Lightning seemed a little flustered and annoyed, Doc couldn’t help but chuckle to himself. 

“What took you two so long?” he inquired.  
“Reporters,” Lightning groaned.  
“What did they want this time?” Doc asked in reply. Sally couldn’t help but giggle.  
“Well, Sally and I made the mistake of holding hands on our way here.” The young racer briefed.  
“No wonder you two were taking forever. They must have gone crazy over your love life, rookie.” The older man laughed.  
“Yeah, they did.” Lightning chuckled as he grabbed his water bottle from the cooler inside the pit box.  
“And to think, you two were just holding hands; imagine what they’ll do when you two kiss!” Doc exclaimed, causing Lightning to spit out his water.

Sally and Doc couldn’t help but laugh at Lightning’s reaction; it was just priceless! He glared at the two as he mumbled: 

“Not funny, Doc.”


	2. Kissing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for taking so long on this one; I've been a little busy lately but here it is!

“Lightning McQueen wins the Piston Cup!” Darrel Cartrip, the RSN announcer exclaimed over the intercom.

The crowd cheered as the red #95 stock car did a victory lap around the track. Though no one could see him inside the car, Lightning was beaming with pride. He’d finally won his first Piston Cup! Sally and the rest of the crew found him after the race, swarmed by reporters.

“Stickers!” Sally exclaimed as she finally made her way through the reporters.  
“Sally!” he exclaimed in reply as she hugged him.  
“I knew you could do it, Stickers! I’m so proud of you!” she congratulated.

Suddenly, Lightning pulled Sally into a tight embrace, and planted a passionate kiss on her lips. His action caught Sally off-guard, but she quickly recovered and welcomed her boyfriend’s impulsive act. The crowd of fans nearby roared at the sight of the couple. Cameras flashed as every reporter at the track tried to snap a photo of the two.

Lightning and Sally became the paparazzi’s new focus a few months ago when the two were caught on camera having a date at the newly re-opened Wheel Well. Rumors about their relationship spread throughout the racing world like wildfire. Some theorized she was a steady girlfriend, some said they had been secretly married for years (which in part helped explain the theory that him getting lost in Radiator Springs was a huge publicity stunt). Some even said she was his mistress in a cray love-affair.

While Lightning was annoyed by all the rumors, Sally simply ignored them. It was later revealed that she was also his attorney, which then sprouted dozens more rumors.

As the young couple broke apart from the kiss, reporters kept snapping photos of them until Doc had had enough and told them off.

“go on! Get out of here! There’s nothing to see here! What, haven’t you seen a couple kiss before?” he grumbled.  
“thanks, Doc.” Sally exclaimed with a giggle.  
“why is it that no matter where you two go, you manage to start a ruckus?” the older man wondered.  
“the people love us?” Lightning replied sheepishly, earning himself a glare from his crew chief.  
“I’m serious, rookie. It seems like the world can’t get enough of you two lovebirds.” he grumbled.  
“honestly, I wish they could just leave us be occasionally,” Lightning stated.  
“admit it Stickers, you love all the attention.” Sally smirked.  
“don’t get me wrong, I do love having attention, but I wish they’d just but out of our private lives a bit more.” He explained.  
“I know what you mean, kid. The press could never leave me and the Mrs. alone either back in the day,” Doc sympathized as he walked away.  
“wait, what? Doc! Wait! What do you mean ‘you and the Mrs.’? What?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is also a bit short, but I had a lot of fun writing it! I hope you guys enjoyed it!  
> Also, I might touch on Doc and his *supposed* wife in another one-shot in this series.


	3. Out to Dinner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Here’s yet another one-shot for you guys! I had a lot of fun writing this and I can’t wait to work on the next one!

“oh my gosh, it’s really him; it’s Lightning McQueen!” I heard a teenaged girl gawk to her friends as they walked past us.   
“who’s that chick he’s with?” another girl from the same group asked.  
“that’s his girlfriend, duh!” a boy from the group replied.

We can’t go anywhere without someone noticing him; I guess that’s what happens when your boyfriend is a Piston Cup champion. Everywhere we go, Lightning’s fans tend to follow him. Many will ask for a picture or an autograph then they’ll let us get back to what we were doing. The only problem is he has so many fans, it seems like we never have a moment’s peace when we go out.

We had just left the movie theatre, and decided to take the scenic route to Flo’s for dinner. As we walked on the sidewalk, several fans came by asking for pictures and autographs, but Lightning politely declined. When asked why, he’d say he was spending the evening with his girlfriend. I was surprised when he declined to take any pictures or sign autographs or anything else his fans would ask of him, he’s usually so happy to oblige his fans.

The rest of the walk to Flo’s was uneventful. The café wasn’t packed, but it seemed to be a successful night business-wise anyway. Lightning and I grabbed a both and Flo came out to bring us our menus almost instantly.

While we waited, I filled him in on what had been going on while he was on the road. These last few months have been long without him around, but I would never tell him that; I wouldn’t want him to feel guilty because of his career’s schedule.

“you know, I’ve really missed you, Sally.” Lightning smiled.   
“I’ve missed you too, Stickers. It gets a little too quiet around here when you’re on the road,” I laughed.   
“it never really occurred to me that I was most of the noise in town before,” he chuckled.   
“yeah, you’re about 95% of the noise in Radiator Springs.” I stated with a giggle. Lightning couldn’t help but laugh.   
“here you go you two,” Flo exclaimed as she brought us our orders.

A few moments after our meal was served, a young girl, probably around sixteen years old approached us. She was a pretty girl; long curly brown hair and deep, dark brown eyes. She seemed very shy as she approached us.

“excuse me Mr. McQueen, but, could I get a picture?” the girl asked in a soft, fair voice.   
“usually I would, but tonight is a very important night. See, it’s our anniversary and I haven’t seen my girlfriend in months, I owe it to her to give her my complete and undivided attention tonight. If you’re still in town tomorrow though, I would be more than happy to take a picture for you.” Lightning explained with a smile.   
“oh, okay. I completely understand. Happy anniversary, and I’m sorry to have disturbed you,” the girl said with a sincere smile before returning to her group of friends.

Sure, dating Lightning McQueen can be challenging, but I honestly wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, there you have it guys! The next one should be up soon considering it’s currently being edited (I was visiting family and got bored, so I brought a notebook with me and started writing). I hope you all enjoyed this little story as much as I enjoyed writing it, and I will see you next time!


	4. Technology

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See? Told you I’d have the next one out quickly! I had a lot of fun writing this one. Enjoy!

‘ _bzzrt!’_ Sally’s phone vibrated.  
_‘Incoming video call from Stickers <3’ _the screen read.

Sally immediately accepted the call and the red-headed NASCAR driver whom she loved so much appeared on her phone’s screen.

“hey Sal,” Lightning greeted.  
“hey Stickers,” Sally smiled.  
“how’s everything back home?” he asked.

Lightning had been on the road for months, racing. Sally would go with him when the Cozy Cone and Wheel Well weren’t too busy, though this time around, she wasn’t able to. She missed Lightning dearly every time he left town, and looked forward to these video calls.

“everything’s fine, a bit quiet, really. The Cone’s been pretty busy though,” she replied.  
“good to hear that business is going well,” he stated.  
“what about you? How’s it going?” Sally asked in turn.  
“same old, same old, I guess. The guys aren’t making it easy for me this season, which makes us even more competitive. You know, I really miss you, Sally.” he replied with a faint smile.  
“I miss you too, Stickers; I can’t wait until you get home.” she smiled.  
“I mean, as great as the video chats are, it doesn’t compare to the real thing,” Sally continued.  
“I know, baby; I hate being so far away from you,” he replied.

Sally blushed just as someone knocked on the door. It was eleven o’clock at night, who could possibly be here at this hour?

“just a sec, Stickers, someone’s at the door.” she exclaimed, leaving their bedroom to answer the door.  
“take your time, honey,” he replied.

Walking towards the door, Sally tried to think of who could possibly be at her door, with little to no success. When she opened the door, she received the surprise of her life. There stood the man she loved and missed the most in the world; Lightning.

In an instant, Sally wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him amorously. She had truly missed him terribly these past few months.

“it’s good to see you too, Sal.” Lightning chuckled as Sally kissed him.  
“I love you so much,” Sally breathed upon breaking the kiss.  
“I wasn’t expecting you home ‘till the weekend,” the blonde woman stated, obviously thrilled by his sudden appearance.  
“Mack made great time. We managed to pack up early after that last race. Figured you’d like this little surprise,” he explained.  
“I do; this is definitely one of the best surprises you’ve ever given me.” Sally replied, leaning in to kiss the love of her life.

Sally and Lightning went inside and sat on the couch. They spent the night cuddling on the couch while watching movie. Sally drifted off to sleep first, resting on Lightning’s chest. Lightning couldn’t help but smile at his girlfriend; it was good to finally be home.

As difficult as Lightning’s racing schedule made it for them to spend time together, it made the time they did get to spend together even more memorable and cherished.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, there you have it! I’ll try to keep posting as often as I can (I do have other fics to update and work on, plus I do have my life outside of …) so I guess we’ll just see how often I’ll be able to post.


	5. Gaming

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey guys! I’m back with another one-shot. Sorry it took so long, ended up getting a new laptop and had to register for college, so it’s been very busy as of late for me. I hope you all enjoy this story as much as I enjoyed writing it.

“Let’s play Mario Kart!” Mater suggested to the group of racers sitting on McQueen’s sofa.

During the off-season, Lightning, Cal, Bobby, Brick and Mater have a game night every couple weeks or so. Every game night, the guys take turns deciding what game they play. This week, it was Mater’s turn to chose. Lightning dreaded the weeks where it was Mater’s choice because he always chose the same thing; Mario Kart Wii.

Lightning groaned. “Really, Mater? Mario Kart?”   
“you just don’t want to play because you suck at it!” Bobby laughed.   
“I do not! I just find the game a little boring considering it’s what I do for a living,” he argued.   
“we all do that for a living, McQueen! I think you’re just a sore loser." Brick jumped in.   
“admit it, Lightning, you just hate playing Mario Kart because you always lose when we play!" Cal chimed.   
“I do not!” McQueen huffed.   
“we don’t haft'a play Mario Kart, guys…” Mater began, but was quickly interrupted by Bobby.   
“no! We are gonna play the game wether McQueen likes it or not!” He affirmed.   
“…fine.” Lightning grumbled in defeat.

About half an hour into gameplay, Lightning forfeited his controller to Brick, who had decided to sit out the first round. While he wouldn’t ever admit it out loud, the guys were right; he really did suck at Mario Kart. He managed to crash into the track’s walls several times in a single lap, and he fell off the track countless times. He finished in last place in every race so far.

“this is ridiculous! How is a racing game more difficult than actual racing?” Lightning wondered out loud earning a chorus of laughter from his friends.   
“he really is a sore loser, isn’t he?” Brick laughed. Lightning huffed.

Sally returned to her and Lightning’s apartment after working late at the Cozy Cone. It was going on ten o’clock at night when she arrived. As she opened the door to their two-bedroom apartment, she couldn’t help but overhear what was going on in the living room.

“damn it!”

She recognized the voice as Lightning’s. Looking into the room, all she saw was Lightning tossing a wii remote onto the sofa in frustration. What could have gotten him so frustrated?

“is everything okay?” She asked as she entered the room.   
“everything’s fine, Sally. Lightning’s just a sore loser.” Bobby laughed.   
“I am not!” McQueen argued. Sally giggled.   
“oh really? So, you didn't just toss that controller on the couch because you lost?” She questioned, to which Lightning huffed in response.   
“what game are you guys playing, anyway?” She asked the others.   
“Mario Kart!” Cal laughed.

Sally couldn’t contain her laughter. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Lightning McQueen, a famous NASCAR driver, was having a temper tantrum over losing a racing game. The fact that he was that bad at the game made her laugh even more. Soon, Sally was laughing so hard she could hardly breathe!

“It’s not that funny, Sal.” Lightning mumbled.   
“oh, but it is, Stickers.” Sally replied between laughs. Lightning grumbled inaudibly under his breath.   
“It’s okay, Stickers, it’s not like I was dating you for your Mario Kart skills!” She laughed.

After a good ten minutes, the laughing finally subdued. Once Sally caught her breath, Lightning puled her close to him.

“You’re lucky I love you, Sal.” He chuckled.  
“I love you too, Stickers.” She replied planting a soft kiss on his lips.   
“just be thankful he’s a better driver in real-life than he is on the Wii!” Brick exclaimed from the other side of the room, making Sally burst out laughing.  
“come on, guys! Really!” Lightning groaned in annoyance as his girlfriend continued to laugh at his expense.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, there you have it, folks! I hope you enjoyed this story and as always I will do my best to update soon!


	6. Drinks

“have you ever seen him like this before?” Cal asked Sally, snickering.  
“never,” Sally replied, no longer able to contain her laughter.

This was definitely a sight to see. The famous Lightning McQueen, was drunk. _Incredibly_ drunk. In this drunken state he was in, everyone in attendance to the event that evening discovered something new about the champion NASCAR driver…

He’s Scottish. _Very Scottish._

It was the night of the Piston Cup Circuit’s final race after party. Many of the racers were in attendance to this event, as well as their sponsors. McQueen wasn’t one to drink heavily, but he also wasn’t one to back from a challenge, so when Brick Yardley challenged him to a drinking game, Lightning couldn’t resist.

Nobody expected it to go this far, though. After five or six drinks, McQueen began speaking in a Scottish accent. Sally had never heard him speak with an accent before; it was sort of attractive. She had known that he definitely had Scottish heritage (his hair and surname made it a little obvious), but she never realized he actually spoke with the Scottish dialect; if that was in fact his native accent, he hid it well.

Suddenly, Bobby Swift approach the two, a huge grin on his face.

“Brick just challenged Lightning to sing something!” he said between laughs.  
“what’s he going to sing?” Cal asked, curious.  
“you’ll see,” Bobby laughed, pulling his cell phone out of his pocket.

As a familiar rock tune played over the speakers, everyone in attendance at the event turned towards Lightning who was handed a microphone.

“ _When I wake up, well I know I'm gonna be,_  
I'm gonna be the man who wakes up next you  
When I go out, yeah I know I'm gonna be  
I'm gonna be the man who goes along with you  
If I get drunk, well I know I'm gonna be  
I'm gonna be the man who gets drunk next to you  
And if I haver, yeah I know I'm gonna be  
I'm gonna be the man who's havering to you

Everyone chuckled at that verse, which Bobby caught on video. Watching what was on his phone’s screen, the racer couldn’t help but notice that McQueen was looking directly at Sally throughout his performance.

 _But I would walk 500 miles_  
And I would walk 500 more  
Just to be the man who walked a thousand miles  
To fall down at your door

 _When I'm working, yes I know I'm gonna be_  
I'm gonna be the man who's working hard for you  
And when the money, comes in for the work I do  
I'll pass almost every penny on to you  
When I come home well I know I'm gonna be  
I'm gonna be the man who comes back home to you  
And if I grow-old well I know I'm gonna be  
I'm gonna be the man who's growing old with you

 _But I would walk 500 miles_  
And I would walk 500 more  
Just to be the man who walked a thousand miles  
To fall down at your door

_Da da da (da da da)  
Da da da (da da da)_

_Da da da dun diddle un diddle un diddle uh da_

_Da da da (da da da)  
Da da da (da da da)_

_Da da da dun diddle un diddle un diddle uh da_

_When I'm lonely, well I know I'm gonna be_  
I'm gonna be the man who's lonely without you  
And when I'm dreaming, well I know I'm gonna dream  
I'm gonna dream about the time when I'm with you  
When I go out well I know I'm gonna be  
I'm gonna be the man who goes along with you  
And when I come home yes I know I'm gonna be  
I'm gonna be the man who comes back home with you  
I'm gonna be the man who's coming home with you

 _But I would walk 500 miles_  
And I would walk 500 more  
Just to be the man who walked a thousand miles  
To fall down at your door

_Da da da (da da da)  
Da da da (da da da)_

_Da da da dun diddle un diddle un diddle uh da_

_Da da da (da da da)  
Da da da (da da da)_

_Da da da dun diddle un diddle un diddle uh da_

_Da da da (da da da)  
Da da da (da da da)_

_Da da da dun diddle un diddle un diddle uh da_

_Da da da (da da da)  
Da da da (da da da)_

_Da da da dun diddle un diddle un diddle uh da_

_And I would walk 500 miles_  
And I would walk 500 more  
Just to be the man who walked a thousand miles  
To fall down at your door”

The crowd applauded as he finished the song; Bobby turned off his camera. 

“please send me that,” Cal pleaded.  
“of course, I’ll send a copy to both of you,” Bobby smiled to the two as Lightning approached them.  
“hey buddy! Fantastic performance!” Bobby congratulated, stifling a laugh.  
“that was incredible, honey! I didn’t know you could sing,” Sally complimented, kissing him.  
“thanks, love.” McQueen replied, still in his Scottish accent.  
“don’t stop talking,” she giggled.  
“how much have you had to drink?” Cal asked the red-headed racer.  
“you don’t want to know,” McQueen laughed.  
“well, I better get this one back to the hotel before he falls over; you two better come down to Radiator Springs for a visit sometime!” Sally exclaimed as she grabbed her boyfriend by the arm.  
“definitely; besides, Lightning still owes me a rematch around Willy’s Butte!” Cal laughed.  
“have a good night you two, and good luck with him, miss Sally.” Bobby exclaimed as Sally and Lightning made their way towards the exit.  
“thanks, guys, I’m going to need it!” Sally replied before she and Lighting exited the room.

The following morning, while Lightning was extremely hungover, Bobby sent Sally the video of his performance, as well as a Youtube link about an hour or so later. Intrigued by the link, she clicked on it to find that Bobby had posted the video online. It was posted a couple hours ago, but already had over two million views. Instinctively, Sally dialed Bobby’s number. 

“hello?” bobby answered.  
“you posted it online? You realize when he sees this he’s going to kill you,” Sally exclaimed.  
“come on, Sally! He was so drunk last night, he probably won’t even remember this,” he laughed. Sally then heard a groan coming from the bed.  
“looks like he’s up; I’ll talk to you later,” she said as she hung up the phone.  
“hey Stickers, how’re you feeling?” she asked in a hushed tone.  
“what happened last night? Wait, don’t answer that…” he mumbled.  
“how much do you remember?” she asked, handing him a glass of water.  
“well, I remember the accent, and I remember singing, but that’s about it.” He replied.  
“speaking of which, this may sound a little weird, but I need to ask; was that your native accent?” Sally questioned.  
“aye, my love,” he replied, slipping into the accent once more.  
“personally, I love it. Why hide it?” Sally wondered.  
“well, to be honest, I was picked on a lot as a kid because of it, so I eventually started using an American accent.” He explained.  
“well, I love your accent; you should use it more often,” she smiled, as he chuckled in response.  
“so, do tell me, do I have to go and apologize to anyone?” Lightning asked.  
“not at all, actually; in fact, just about everyone thought you were entertaining last night,” Sally giggled as she pulled out her phone to show him the video Bobby had sent her.  
“oh my god…” McQueen groaned, watching is drunken performance from the night before.  
“there’s more…” Sally gulped.  
“oh no…”  
“Bobby may have posted the video online,” Sally informed.  
“he what?” Lightning’s eyes widened.  
“it’s up to 2500 views so far,” she laughed. McQueen groaned in annoyance.  
“great, now the whole world knows,” he grumbled.  
“oh Stickers, it’s not the end of the world; so what if the world knows you have an accent? I think it’s cute,” she smiled, kissing him tenderly.

Suddenly, Lightning’s phone rang; it was his friend, and also RSN field reporter, Kori Turbowitz.

“hello?” he answered.  
“hey Lightning, it’s Kori. I was wondering if I could get an interview with you about that video of you that just surfaced online? Do you know which one I’m talking about?” she asked.  
“I do, and sure, Kori; I’ll give you an interview.” He replied.  
“thanks, Lightning! How about sometime next week?”  
“sounds good,”

With that, Lightning hung up the phone, and looked at Sally. 

“Kori wants an interview about that stupid video; remind me to kill Bobby later,” Lightning complained.  
“it’s not that bad, Stickers. There are far worse things that could have happened. Now, get some rest, because you are clearly very hungover.” Sally replied with a laugh. 

With a faint smile, Lightning laid back down into bed to try and get some sleep.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song is called 'I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)' by The Proclaimers.  
> Also, I think the next one-shot in this series is going to be the interview that was mentioned in this story.   
> Thanks for reading!


	7. Interview

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow-up to ‘Drinks’. Enjoy!

“thank-you so much for doing this, Lightning; I really appreciate it” RSN reporter Kori Turbowitz exclaimed in appreciation.   
“it’s no problem, Kori. Besides, there’s no one else I’d rather talk to about all this, and finally set the story straight.” Lightning smiled. 

A week or so ago, a video of Lightning drunkenly singing in a Scottish accent was posted online. The video in question has since gone viral, and has started several rumors revolving around McQueen and his lineage. 

“going live in 3...2...1!” one of the crew members informed.             
“good evening folks! I’m Kori Turbowitz, and I’m here live with 2-time Piston Cup champion, Lightning McQueen.”  
“thanks for having me Kori,”   
“now, Lightning, a week ago a very interesting video appeared online, would you care to elaborate?” she asked.   
“well, we were at the after-party for the championship race of the season, and my buddy Brick challenged me to a drinking game. Needless to say, I don’t back down from a challenge. At some point, he somehow got me to agree to do that...impromptu performance.” he replied.   
“Let’s get to the big question; in the video, you were singing in a Scottish accent. We’re all dying to know; where did that come from?” she asked. Lightning sighed in defeat.   
“well, Kori, to be honest, this isn’t even my real accent; the one you heard in the video is,” he replied.   
“so, you’ve been hiding your native accent from the world for all these years?”   
“aye, indeed I have,” McQueen acknowledged, allowing himself to speak in his native accent.   
“wow! But, why hide it?” Kori wondered.   
“I was actually bullied a lot for it as a kid, so I eventually changed my accent.” He explained.   
“So, it’s quite obvious you have Scottish heritage, but exactly how far down the line does that go?” Kori followed-up her previous question.   
“I was actually born in Scotland. My father’s from there, and my mother’s from Texas. When I was around five or six, we moved here to the US.” he explained.   
“really? I never would have guessed to be perfectly honest with you,” Kori smiled.   
“I’ve put a lot of effort into keeping it as discreet as possible, so that makes sense.” he smiled.   
“how did Sally react to all this?” she asked.   
“Sally was fairly surprised at first, but she was also quite interested in hearing the full story; she asked me so many questions, you’d think she’s writing a book,” he chuckled.   
“it is a fascinating origin story. My last question for you is, are we going to start hearing this accent of yours more often now?” Kori asked with a laugh.   
“oh maybe, it might come out more often now that I’m not really trying to hide it, and of course special circumstances will definitely bring it out again.” Lightning laughed in reply.   
“thank-you so much for your time, Lightning.” she thanked.   
“my pleasure, Kori.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, there you have it! This was fun to write! The next one should be coming soon, I can’t give an exact date yet, but it’ll be fairly soon I promise!


	8. Sick Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, if you follow me on any social media (especially Tumblr), you’ll know that I had been feeling under the weather for at least two weeks and just got better last week (the cough is lingering, but whatever) and sort of got inspired to write this up! I hope you guys enjoy!

“I swear it’s like she’s gotten worst, Doc; she hasn’t slept at all last night. I can’t leave her like this.” McQueen sighed into his cellphone, standing outside of the apartment he and Sally shared.   
“I understand, kid. I’ll let the officials know you won’t be racing today, now go take care of your girl.” Doc replied.   
“Thanks, Doc,” Lightning thanked, hanging up the phone. 

Sally’s been suffering from a terrible cold for almost two weeks. She seemed to have improved within the first few days, but then got worse again. She was up all-night coughing, and barely got any sleep. Lightning hated to see her in such a state.

McQueen had a race in Phoenix today, but decided to pull out of the race to stay home and take care of Sally. He entered the apartment as quietly as possible, as to let Sally sleep after that insanely long night. Quietly entering their bedroom, Lightning was relieved to see that she was finally asleep. Approaching his sick girlfriend, he gently placed a hand on her forehead, and found that she was incredibly warm.

Fearing she might be feverish, Lightning went to the bathroom to soak a facecloth under the faucet. Returning to the bedroom, he placed the facecloth on Sally’s forehead as she stirred slightly. Opening her eyes, Sally was surprised to see Lightning sitting on the side of the bed beside her.

“Stickers? What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be in Phoenix?” she asked.   
“I pulled out of the race,” he replied.   
“what? Why? Are you okay?” Sally interrogated.   
“I’m fine, Sal; it’s you I’m worried about,” Lightning replied, concern in his eyes.   
“I’m fine… Stickers…” she said between coughs.   
“no, you’re not, Sal, and there was no way I was going to leave you here alone like this.” he replied, his concern growing.

Just as she was about to respond, Sally began to cough violently. After a few moments, the cough subdued. Sally opened her mouth to respond, but was quickly shushed by Lightning. 

“you’re burning up, Sal.” He said as he handed her the thermometer.

As much as Sally wanted to argue, she knew deep down that Lightning was right. Putting the thermometer in her mouth, Sally waited until it beeped to check the reading.

_104_ _° F_

She did have a fever. Sally went into another coughing fit; one that lasted a lot longer than any other one yet, which worried Lightning to no end. As the coughing subdued, Lightning looked at her with concern.

“Sally, let me bring you to see a doctor, please.” he pleaded.   
“I’m fine, Lightning…” Sally argued between coughs.   
“no, you’re not; please, Sally, just go to the doctor’s and get this checked out in case it’s something worse than just a cold.” Lightning practically begged.   
“fine, Stickers. If it’ll get you to stop worrying so much,” she sighed in defeat.

Typically, Lightning enjoyed being right, but not this time. It was something much worse than a cold. Turns out, the cold developed into a lung infection. Once they were back home, Sally propped herself up in bed with the help of many, many pillows while Lightning brewed her a cup of tea.

All Sally really wanted at this point was to be able to sleep; she was exhausted. Her constant coughing kept her up all night long. The doctor had given her some antibiotics to fight off the infection, and all she could do now was wait for it to take effect.

“thanks, Stickers,” Sally thanked as Lightning handed her a steaming mug of tea.

Sally watched as Lightning put a disk into their DVD player and turned on the television. As he sat on the bed, the DVD menu revealed that he had put in The Lion King; one of Sally’s favorite movies. Sally smiled as he motioned for her to move closer to him.

“I don’t want to get you sick, Stickers…” she mumbled as she moved closer to him.   
“I’ll be fine, Sal. Right now, I just want you to feel better.” He smiled.

Lightning put an arm around her as she rested her head on his chest, and pressed play.

“thanks, Lightning,” Sally thanked once more, a faint smile on her face.   
“it’s my pleasure, Sal. Now, you should try to get some sleep; you look exhausted.” He replied, planting a soft kiss on her forehead. 

With a tired smile, Sally rested her head against Lightning’s chest, and attempted to fall asleep. About three quarters of the way through the film, she finally fell asleep. Eventually, Lightning dosed off as well, and the two spent the rest of the day snoozing soundly in each other’s company.

**Author's Note:**

> A little short in my opinion, but I hope you guys enjoyed regardless! I'll do my best to update as much as I can!


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